Thought processes and conversations started under the tilted cap of Tropicana Field. Someday everyone will know the Rays play in St. Petersburg, Florida, not TAMPA, or the fictitious city of TAMPA BAY.

Do We Need to Worry About Farnsworth?

Some have blurted out the notion lately that the Tampa Bay Rays will exercise Kyle Farnsworth’s club option at the end of the season without delay. For some reason, I am smelling a bit of lingering Troy Percival aroma right now on someone’s shoes. Sure Farnsworth has a really “Rays friendly” $ 3.3 million dollar salary for 2012, but if his elbow flares up and he needs any surgery or down time, it could be a huge kink in the Rays late inning armor.

On Saturday night, from the moment Farnsworth got up to begin throwing in the Rays Bullpen, his mannerisms and delivery just seemed a bit off from my seat right behind the Rays Bullpen mound. His pitches before he entered the game in the top of the ninth inning just didn’t seem to have their usual crisp bite to them. His new found friend, the cutter, simply seemed to a bit flat, almost hovering in the zone a little too long.

Of course I am not a Pitching Coach, but if I saw a cutter that was not spinning crispy and not starting to dive bomb out of the zone for the corner, I would be wetting my lips that I was about to have a good plate appearance. Sure Farnsworth threw 14 of his 22 pitches for strikes last night, but two of them unfortunately struck spectators gloves in the Rightfield stands. This is not the usual intimidating Farnsworth, this is more like a wounded deceptive Percival.

In a span of 6 pitches, the Rays went from leading 5-3 to seeing the Red Sox tie the game 5-all. Farnsworth only productive out of his appearance came courtesy of his first batter Boston SS Marco Scutaro who hit a grounder to Farnsworth, who completed a simple 1-3 put out before the fireworks began. After that first out, Boston’s explosion quickly turned into a possible Rays implosion. And this is not the first time this week the Rays Republic has seen Farnsworth look more unsure of his stuff right now than his usual intimidating himself.

I am not trying to insulting Farnsworth right now with the Percival reference, but the way Farnsworth is throwing the ball is eerily reminiscent of the same thing activities that preceded Percival’s two Rays injuries that ultimately turned out to be lingering injuries that Percival was hiding from the team.

You only have to go back in time to 4 days ago (September 7th) in a closely contested game against the Texas Rangers to see there is a weird pattern starting to develop within Farnsworth’s late inning success that is beginning to become a bit concerning to me, especially with this Rays squad starting to breathe life back into their post season goal.

During that September 7th contest, Farnsworth gave aup a monster shot to Rangers INF Ian Kinsler and that homer helped Farnsworth record only his second blown save since a road contest back in Kansas City back on July 23, 2011. Suddenly Farnsworth has materialized into someone less reliable, less dependable than the guy who’s 2.00 ERA was ranked # 1 among American League closers before Saturday night’s 2 Red Sox rocket shots destroyed his chance for save # 24. Uncharacteristically Farnsworth as of late has looked more like“Wild Thing” than “Sure Thing”.

The main conclusion you have to summarize is that Farnsworth might not be completely healed, or might be shunning off the intense pain factor in his right elbow to instead try and be a veteran presence and defensive stalwart because of the Rays fragile situation in the Bullpen. Farnsworth might be hiding a simple truth. He is hurt, but does not want to be a cause or reason for the Rays stumble even for a simple hiccup in their playoff chase.

But “taking one for the team” is a noble and respectful thing usually within baseball, but not a great attribute when you are counted on and you do not have your stuff at the A+ level Farnsworth possessed before his recent “late season vacation” due to elbow soreness. Considering Farnsworth has surrendered 1 Home Run allowed for every 63 batters faced (10-HR, 633-BF) since 2009, this latest plunge into the darkness has merit for Rays Republic worry.

Hopefully it is just another fluke blown save appearance, one that is now out of Farnsworth’s system, but the recent home blown save string has to begin to worry more than Farnsworth, it has to worry Rays Manager Joe Maddon and the Rays Republic. If Farnsworth were to go down with an injury at this juncture in the post season run, it could cripple a vital cog in the Rays late inning machine.

I’m not trying to say the Rays need to investigate for themselves, do medical tests on Farnsworth’s elbow, maybe it is just simply time for the Rays to let someone else take the 9th inning reins for a few games. Let Farnsworth get himself has his glorious out pitch, the cutter, back into that defined groove that moves us so well after Rays victories.

I hope it is just simple fatigue or that his pitches right now are just missing their marks, but the only one who knows the truth is Farnsworth and Rays catcher Kelly Shoppach who came on in the 9th to go behind the plate. I have a feeling neither of them will be speaking about it anytime soon. But we need full disclosure right now, hurt or not, something is just not in sync right now with Farnsworth, and it needs to be fixed fast, or catching Boston will be the least of the Rays worries.

2 Comments

Farnsworth’s elbow problems have been the reason for his recent struggled. It has been nagging him for a while, and is a bad sign for any pitcher. I think he’s probably going to hit the DL, and it could be a problem for the Rays if their relievers from Durham don’t pitch well. I think De La Rosa may help for now, but putting Torres or Moore in the bullpen down the stretch could be another solution. Farnsworth has been a huge part in the Rays success this year, but I doubt he’ll be a Ray next year.

Yossif,
I disagree with you on if Farnsy will bne here next season. Barring a surgery, he will be a Ray until someone in the farm system, possibly McGee shows they can do the job. Plus the Rays have 2012 club options ( $ 3.3 million) that is a bargain for a closer with Farnsworth experience. ,Still, the lingering ghost of Percival haunts me that this injury could push a major dark cloud over the Rays post season run……I expect Joel Peralta to be the last guy standing on the mound right now, but Maddon may make it a bit more hairraising and do his patented “closer by committee” ensemble.

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